Sifting through countless of stocks in the Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. or Cognex Corporation because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation

Benchmark Electronics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, offers product design, engineering services, technology solutions, and manufacturing services in the Americas, Asia, and Europe. The company provides design and engineering services and technology solutions, including new product design, prototype, testing, and related engineering services; and custom test and automation equipment design services. It also offers electronics manufacturing and testing services, such as printed circuit board assembly and test solutions, assembly of subsystems, circuitry and functionality testing of printed assemblies, environmental and stress testing, and component reliability testing; component engineering services; manufacturing defect analysis, in-circuit testing, functional testing, and life cycle testing services, as well as environmental stress tests of assemblies of boards or systems; and failure analysis. In addition, the company provides precision machining and electromechanical assembly services; and subsystem and system integration services, including assembly, configuration, and testing for various industries. Further, it provides value-added support systems; supply chain management solutions; direct order fulfillment; and aftermarket non-warranty services, including repair, replacement, refurbishment, remanufacturing, exchange, systems upgrade, and spare parts manufacturing throughout a product’s life cycle. The company serves original equipment manufacturers in the semi-conductor capital equipment, industrial, medical, aerospace and defense, and advanced computing and communications industries. It markets its services and solutions primarily through a direct sales force. The company was formerly known as Electronics, Inc. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Cognex Corporation provides machine vision products that capture and analyze visual information to automate manufacturing and distribution tasks worldwide. Its machine vision products are used to automate the manufacturing and tracking of discrete items, including mobile phones, automotive components, and e-commerce packages by locating, identifying, inspecting, and measuring them. The company offers VisionPro software, a suite of patented vision tools for advanced programming; In-Sight product line of vision systems and sensors; QuickBuild that allows customers to build vision applications with a graphical, flowchart-based programming interface; and DataMan, an image-based barcode readers and barcode verifiers; vision accessories, such as industrial cameras, lenses, lighting, vision controllers, frame grabbers, and I/O cards. It sells its products to automotive, logistics, consumer electronics, medical-related, semiconductor, consumer products, and food and beverage industries through a network of distributors and integrators. The company was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts.

Latest Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components and Benchmark Electronics, Inc., Cognex Corporation Stock News

As of February 12, 2026, Benchmark Electronics, Inc. had a $2.1 billion market capitalization, compared to the Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components median of $704.7 million. Benchmark Electronics, Inc.’s stock is NA in 2026, NA in the previous five trading days and up 38.55% in the past year.

Currently, Benchmark Electronics, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 57.5. Benchmark Electronics, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $2.6 billion with a 0.9% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 3.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.547 per share for the current fiscal year. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. currently has a 1.2% dividend yield.

Currently, Cognex Corporation’s price-earnings ratio is 90.3. Cognex Corporation’s trailing 12-month revenue is $971.7 million with a 11.5% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 18.0%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.136 per share for the current fiscal year. Cognex Corporation currently has a 0.6% dividend yield.

How We Compare Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
Benchmark Electronics, Inc.	BHE	F
Cognex Corporation	CGNX	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a Growth Score of 16, which is Very Weak. Cognex Corporation has a Growth Score of 81, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: Cognex Corporation

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, Cognex Corporation has a more attractive growth grade than Benchmark Electronics, Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, Cognex Corporation could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Benchmark Electronics, Inc.	BHE	B
Cognex Corporation	CGNX	A

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a Quality Score of 76, which is Strong. Cognex Corporation has a Quality Score of 95, which is Very Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: Cognex Corporation

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Cognex Corporation has a better overall quality grade than Benchmark Electronics, Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Cognex Corporation could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Benchmark Electronics, Inc.	BHE	A
Cognex Corporation	CGNX	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 83, which is Very Positive. Cognex Corporation has a Earnings Estimate Score of 46, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Benchmark Electronics, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than Cognex Corporation. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Benchmark Electronics, Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation Grades

In addition to Growth, Estimate Revisions and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Benchmark Electronics, Inc. or Cognex Corporation Stock?

Overall, Benchmark Electronics, Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 16, Estimate Revisions Score of 83 and Quality Score of 76.

Cognex Corporation stock has a Growth Score of 81, Estimate Revisions Score of 46 and Quality Score of 95.

Comparing Benchmark Electronics, Inc. and Cognex Corporation’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.